A Cairo criminal court acquitted on Thursday 40 NGO workers who had previously been sentenced to prison in a high-profile case that had strained US-Egyptian relations. In 2013, an Egyptian court sentenced 43 Egyptian and foreign employees of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in Egypt to prison terms ranging from one to five years and ordered their organisations closed after they were convicted of operating without licences and illegally receiving foreign funds.

MP Souad al-Masry for Port Said governorate has proposed raising the legal marriage age for girls to 21 years old in order to address the phenomenon of marriage of minors, which she said has to become a threat to the public security of the Egyptian society. The current legal marriage age is 18. Marriage means building an integrated society. The rules must be sound. Many girls and young men before that age do not have the necessary experience to raise children, maintain family cohesion and create a new generation capable of taking responsibility, Masry said in a statement on Thursday.

Egypt s Minister of Health Hala Zayed has announced that nearly 19 million citizens have been screened for Hepatitis C and other non-communicable diseases as part of the 100 Million Lives campaign, the largest-ever nationwide campaign to eradicate hepatitis C launched last October. Zayed affirmed that a total of 6.5 million citizens have been screened for the virus since the launch of the campaign s second phase by the end of November.

The Central Bank of Egypt board is mulling re-opening the door for licensing international banks branches to join the Egyptian market in the coming period. An official source from CBE told MENA Tuesday that the step will promote confidence in the Egyptian economy and the banking sector and contribute to boosting the sector s competitiveness.

Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi stressed Egypt s humanitarian and moral commitment to the safety and welfare of all refugees, including 5 million refugees living in Egypt, as well as Cairo s commitment to achieving stability in the Middle East. The president s remarks came during a press conference with Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz in Vienna as part of the president s official visit to the central European country.

EgyptAir has announced a new service named “Flight Pass”, allowing the airline’s customers various discount rates on their flight tickets, in cooperation with global travel service provider Optiontown. Chairman of EgyptAir Holding Company Ahmed Adel said that the service would meet the needs of travelers in their flights and airports, saving them time and effort. “We hope that the traveler will enjoy outstanding travel experience on our planes, and spend travelling hours full of advantages and services.”

Egypt s interior ministry said it is offering residency to foreigners who own residential properties in the country, in a bid to boost hard currency needed to improve the country s finances. The decision came five months after the parliament passed amendments in July offering citizenship to foreigners who deposit at least 7 million Egyptian pounds (approximately $390,000) in Egypt and then hand it over to the state coffers after five years.

President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi will participate in the EU-African forum on Sunday during his 4-day visit to Austria, aiming to reinforce the partnership between African and European countries, presidency spokesperson Bassem Radi said. Radi added that Sisi will give a speech on Egypt’s vision concerning development efforts in Africa.

Egypt s Central Bank (CBE) is to issue on Thursday treasury bills worth EGP 18.7 billion in two auctions. The first 357-day-term treasury bill is to be issued worth EGP 9.2 billion, while the second 182-day-term treasury is worth of EGP 9.5 billion.

Egypt s President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi issued a decree approving a loan agreement worth $100 million between Egypt and the African Development Bank (AfDB), earmarked to finance a wastewater treatment plant at Abu Rawash, Giza. The president also issued a decree endorsing a second agreement on a $50 million loan related to the Abu Rawash plant project, offered by AfDB on behalf of the Africa Growing Together Fund.

During his participation in the signing ceremony to construct the Rufiji dam in Tanzania, Egypt s PM Mostafa Madbouly said that the Egyptian construction alliance winning a tender to design and construct the project affirms Cairo s commitment to supporting development efforts in Tanzania and Africa. During the ceremony on Wednesday, which was attended by Tanzanian President John Magufuli and top country officials, Madbouly gave a speech where he expressed hopes that the project would open new horizons for cooperation between Egypt and Tanzania.

Parliament agreed in principle on Sunday on government-drafted amendments to two laws, the Supply Affairs Law and the Protection of Competition and Prevention of Monopolistic Practices Law, in a bid to toughen up penalties for monopolistic practices. Final approval was postponed to another session due to the lack of a quorum, however. The amendments aim to rein in prices on local markets, particularly those of essential goods.

Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly said on Tuesday that Egyptian companies investments in African markets have reached $8 billion, state news agency MENA reported. The PM s comments came during the inauguration of the first Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF 2018), which kicked off on Tuesday in Cairo.

In a meeting with members of the Egyptian parliament s economic affairs committee on Tuesday, Egypt s Minister of Finance Mohamed Maeet said that despite complaints by citizens about the harsh living conditions brought on by the government s economic reforms, Egyptians will reap the fruits of economic reform in a gradual way. The minister assured that citizens are already feeling the positive effects of the reforms, as the government has managed to reduce inflation rates and make sure that basic goods and services are available at all times on the market.

Minister of Planning and Administrative Reform Hala El-Saeed said that exports are vital for the Egyptian economy, adding that the government is seeking to increase annual exports by 15 to 20 percent. The minister s remarks were made during her meeting with governor of the Central Bank of Egypt Tarek Amer, the Council of Governors of the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) and representatives of the IsDB s Islamic Corporation for the Insurance of Investment and Export Credit (ICIEC) led by the corporation s CEO Abdel-Rahman El-Kaissi, Director of Middle East and North Africa Morad Mizori and Regional Director Ali Mostafa.

Egypt s annual urban consumer price inflation dipped to 15.7 percent in November from 17.7 percent in October, the official statistics agency CAPMAS said on Monday, exceeding analysts expectations. The rate had been increasing steadily since August, reflecting the impact of the government s fuel, electricity and transportation subsidy cuts that helped it meet the terms of its $12 billion IMF loan.

Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi says that ensuring security and stability in Africa is considered an investment for the continent. El-Sisi made the comments during the first session of the Africa 2018 economic forum in the Red Sea resort town of Sharm El-Sheikh.

Egypt signed on Sunday a 229-million-euro deal with the European Investment Bank (EIB) to improve sanitation and community infrastructure in the Nile Delta, the EIB announced in a press statement. Signed on the sidelines of the Africa 2018 economic forum in Sharm El-Sheikh in the presence of PM Mostafa Mabdouly, the initial agreement on the deal was reached in October during a visit by Egypt s Investment Minister Sahar Nasr to Luxemburg.

Egypt s President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi met on Thursday with the CEO of the multinational technology giant Cisco Systems and a senior official in the automobile company Mercedes-Benz to discuss pushing investments and cooperation during the upcoming period. President El-Sisi expressed to Cisco Systems CEO Chuck Robbins his appreciation for the company s efforts in supporting Egypt s transformation towards digital technology through its current investments and training of young Egyptian cadres.

Egypt s foreign ministry issued a statement on Thursday condemning a recent report by the UN special rapporteur on the right to housing which alleges violations in the area of housing rights in the country, saying the report contained fabricated incidents and baseless allegations about the government s policies in the area of housing. The ministry said that Egypt had invited the special rappateur to visit the country between 24 September and 3 October as part of the government s openness to cooperate with international human rights bodies and enable them to understand the challenges faced by the government in providing suitable housing.

The World Bank announced Wednesday it is loaning Egypt $1 billion to support the country s private sector and create new jobs. The new programme will build on a series of annual loans totaling $3.15 billion that the bank issued from 2015 to 2017 to support Egypt s economic reforms.